Interior book formatting & layout services

Book Design and Formatting starts at just $399

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Questions? Call us at 877-961-6878

What is book formatting?

Why does my book need interior formatting? - Indie Author Minute

A well-formatted and designed book is critical to your success as an author. Even though you worked hard on your book manuscript, it may not get the attention it deserves without professional formatting from a book formatting service. Whether you're looking for eBook formatting or formatting for physical books, BookBaby provides book formatting services that provide the best possible reading experience for your book's audience. Our staff of professional book designers will work with your input and create a custom layout to match the theme and message of your book. Our book designers don't use templates to design your book format. Each book is custom designed by a real life professional book designer right here in our New Jersey facility. And best of all, we send you proofs of your designs to review and approve. We stand behind our work with the book publishing industry's only 100% quality guarantee!

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Questions about interior book formatting?

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Interior Book Design
(Manuscript Formatting)

Professionally formatted text is an important part of book design. A clear hierarchy and readable typeface help create a layout that is inviting to your reader. Every section you include in your manuscript (foreword, dedication, chapters, etc.) will be custom formatted to create a polished book. We will send a PDF proof for approval before printing. We offer both eBook manuscript formatting and Print manuscript formatting (Black Text or Color Text Design).

Black Text Design includes:

Customized layout and a formatting option that meets industry standards and provides the ultimate reading experience for your book audience.
Ideal for Novels and other general fiction, Biographies and Poetry books
Black text printing only. If images are included they will be printed in grayscale.

Color Text Design includes:

Combination of text, graphics and color photos for the greatest visual impact.
Best suited for Art books, Photography books, Cookbooks and Children's books.
Text and Images will be printed in full color.

After you've selected the design options that are right for you and saved your quote, you will be asked to complete a short design questionnaire. It will give you the opportunity to share your ideas about the mood of your book or the style of the body text that is inside pages. You will also have the opportunity to upload images of your own for us to work with. BookBaby designers will combine your input with their expertise to create a custom designed book that you'll be proud to show off.

IMPORTANT: The interior book design and formatting service does not include editorial services and is strictly a design service. BookBaby does offer stand alone editing services. You should upload your fully-edited and final text. Non-design related text edits after uploading will incur additional cost.

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Before & After Samples

example of a book before and after BookBaby's interior layout services

example of before and after BookBaby's formatting services

sample of a children's book before and after BookBaby's layout services

Interior Book Design

Interior Book Design (Manuscript Formatting)

You can use the chart below to get an idea of your page count for some of our most popular trim sizes. Factors such as numbers of images in the book and amount of chapters make it difficult to pinpoint. There is no guarantee your book will fit neatly into the projections below, but it will help you to obtain a ballpark figure. Word count can be obtained in Microsoft Word under the "Tools" menu. If you have overestimated, we will refund the overages when we have a final formatted page count. If you underestimate, customer service will contact you to discuss the balance due on your order.

Word Count	POCKET BOOK pages	DIGEST pages	TRADE pages
10,000	30-75	25-50	25-50
20,000	75-100	50-100	50-100
30,000	100-150	75-150	75-150
50,000	200-300	150-250	150-250
70,000	250-375	250-350	200-300
100,000	400-500	350-450	300-400
150,000	550-650	450-575	400-500
200,000	700-800	600-700	550-650
225,000	N/A	700-800	650-750
250,000	N/A	N/A	700-800

Based on 11pt font (9pt for Pocket size), 1.5 line spacing, no images.

Part of being a professional author is looking the part. It's our job to handle the details that add up to a book your readers will stick their noses in. We'll find a typeface that's not only readable but works well within your book genre. If your book has text and visuals, we'll create a page hierarchy that fits all of your content and is still easy-to-follow. It can be tough to keep track of these things. But that's why you have us. We're here to make sure all the little things add up to a compelling book with a big presentation.

Gina Stewart and Amy Epright, BookBaby Designers

Frequently Asked Questions

What should go on the front of a book?

The author's name, book title, and imagery. If you're stuck in creator's block, turn to our book cover design services where our in-house designers transform your ideas into professional covers for any book genre.

Who owns the creative work?

As the author, you own all aspects of your print book. We just simply help with formatting books!

What file types can I submit for formatting?

Manuscripts should be submitted as Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx) files. Other file types, such as PDF or Google Docs, must be converted to Word before submission. Consistent formatting in the original file helps ensure a smooth process.

What kind of editing services does BookBaby offer?

BookBaby offers an abundance of professional editing services for all genres, whether you're writing a children's book, fiction book, nonfiction book, cookbook, and more.

Can BookBaby format my manuscript for both print and eBook?

Yes. BookBaby provides formats optimized for print and eBook, including proper margins, embedded fonts, a clickable table of contents, and compatibility with Amazon Kindle, Apple Books, and other major platforms.

What is the correct formatting for a book title?

Book titles should follow title case capitalization: capitalize the first and last words, all nouns, pronouns, adjectives, verbs, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions. Articles, coordinating conjunctions, and short prepositions remain lowercase unless they are the first or last word.

Can BookBaby add page numbers, headers, or footers?

Yes. Formatting includes professional pagination, headers, and footers. Section breaks, chapter headings, and front/back matter are also formatted to industry standards.

Will my manuscript be checked for layout consistency?

Yes. The formatting team reviews font usage, chapter spacing, margin alignment, and table of contents accuracy to ensure a polished, professional appearance.

Can I include images or graphics in my formatted book?

Absolutely. BookBaby formats images, illustrations, and tables to fit print and eBook layouts. High-resolution files are recommended to avoid distortion.

Can I make changes after formatting is completed?

Yes. BookBaby allows minor revisions after initial formatting, so you can adjust your manuscript before finalizing the print or eBook files.

Tell us more about your book

What's your project type?
Select project type

What’s your book genre?
Select book genre

How many books do you need? (1 or 25 - 2,000)
Enter quantity (1 or 25 - 2,000)

What’s your page count? (24 - 840)
Enter page count (24 - 840)

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